


Tears

by DarylsBabyGirl



Category: The Walking Dead & Related Fandoms, The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Kissing, M/M, Paul cries, Tumblr Prompt, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-24
Updated: 2017-10-24
Packaged: 2019-01-22 08:05:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,970
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12477060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarylsBabyGirl/pseuds/DarylsBabyGirl
Summary: Another prompt from the What I Like About You HCs! It almost got out of hand, but I managed to rein it in! This one is from the HC that Daryl's only seen Paul cry once and that was after he fucked the Saviors up when they tried to fuck Daryl up!





	Tears

Paul had been up in a tree with some binoculars, scouting out a building at the edge of a city. They'd brought in some people who said that the building had a lot of food in it, so Maggie and Rick had sent Daryl and Jesus to go check it out. They were happy to work together. Their relationship was still fairly fresh, so any time they got to spend together was precious. They left Alexandria happy, but wary. They couldn't let themselves get distracted outside the walls. They may be strong together, but emotions were high due to the war and their love for one another could cause problems. They were protective of each other, and shit happens outside the walls.

Daryl stared up into the tree, watching Paul to make sure he didn't fall. He'd wanted to be the one to go up there, but Paul had insisted, saying in case he fell, Daryl could catch him easily. If Daryl had fallen, Paul would've been crushed under the hunter's larger form. Daryl had snorted at him. Daryl Dixon does not fall out of trees. Paul had chuckled, kissed him softly and started climbing up. The hunter stayed down below, keeping a look out for walkers and Saviors. He sighed, arms crossed over his chest and waiting for word from the scout. Footsteps fell behind him and he whirled around, reaching for the gun in the back of his pants. Four Saviors walked up to him, guns drawn and cocky smirks on their lips. 

“Well... lookit who we have here! It's the dog that ran away!” One Savior laughed, joined by the other three. “What was his name?” He looked over his shoulder and the Saviors shrugged. “Darren? Derek? Darla? I don't even remember.”

Daryl grit his teeth, glaring at them through his bangs. 

Paul tensed, hearing the voices. He lowered the binoculars and looked down, watching Daryl slowly step back closer to the tree as the Saviors moved forward. 'Shit...' Paul put the binoculars on the branch he was balanced on and reached for one of his knives in his belt. 

“You know, that was a really shitty thing you did to Fat Joey.” The Savior stopped just a few feet away from Daryl. “Fat Joey never hurt no one, and you bashed his head in like a damn pumpkin. You even took his weapon and walkie talkie.” The other three Saviors surrounded Daryl, murder in their eyes. “You could've been one of us, man. You could've lived like a damn king.”

“Ain't like ya'll...” Daryl growled. He was trapped, he had no way of defeating these four Saviors without dying himself. Paul swallowed thickly, staring down at them and trying to think fo a way to attack without getting them both killed. 

“Maybe not... cause we're not dumb. We wouldn't be out in the forest by ourselves in the midst of a war.” The Savior grinned, bringing his gun up. “Now... we're gonna fuck you up like you did to poor Joey. Hold him down, boys!” 

Three of the Saviors jumped on Daryl, one grabbing Daryl's gun and the other two wrestling him to the ground. Daryl yelled and struggled, elbowing the one to his left and kicking out at the one on his right. They jumped on him again, pinning him down and slamming his face into the ground. Paul's heart jumped into his throat. He moved quickly, holding the knife in hand. He jumped down, landing on one of the Saviors pinning Daryl down and sinking the blade into the Savior's head. The other three stepped back, but Jesus didn't give them a chance to react. He grabbed a second knife from the back of his belt and lashed out at the Savior pointing a gun at Daryl, catching the Savior's wrist.

Daryl grabbed the second Savior holding him down and pulled him over his shoulder, a move he learned from Paul. He grabbed the knife from the dead Savior's head and stabbed it into the man's head. Paul knocked the Savior down, his bloody knife claiming another life. The final Savior left alive stared in horror. It had taken them only seconds to claim three lives. He dropped his gun and stepped back as Paul stood up.. 

“J-Just let me go. I swear... I won't tell anyone what happened...” The Savior held his hands up, backing away. 

“Paul...” Daryl whispered, reaching a hand out to calm his lover.

Paul stared the Savior down. They had spoken of beating his lover to death, even tried to pin him down to where he couldn't fight back. “... No.” He growled, clenching his fists. The Savior's eyes widened. He spun around, slipping a bit on leaves as he began running away. 

“Paul-” Paul ignored Daryl and chased the Savior. “Paul!” Daryl chased after them, watching as Paul ran up next to the Savior and drop down. He kicked out at the Savior's legs, tripping the man. He stood up as the Savior rolled over and try backing away. Daryl stopped a few feet away, panting a bit and mind racing for a way to soothe the scout. 

The Savior's back hit a tree and Paul stepped up close to him. “C-Come on, man! Just... let me go! I'll run! I'll run far away from here! I won't go back to Negan, man! I swear! I wasn't gonna do anything to your friend, man!”

“His name is Daryl... and he's not just my friend.” Paul's hands grasped the top of the man's head and his chin, and with a twist, the man's neck snapped and fell limp to the side. Paul stepped back.

Daryl stared at the dead body, heart aching for his precious boyfriend. “Paul-”

“Let's go home...” Paul turned and walked past Daryl, walking back to the tree with his pack. 

The hunter stood still for a moment. Paul was upset. It didn't show on his face, but Daryl knew. He turned and followed Paul, avoiding the dead bodies as he reached down for his bag. Paul jumped down from the tree, but couldn't meet Daryl's eyes as he passed him. They walked in silence back to the highway where they'd hidden the car. Daryl drove them home, glancing over at his boyfriend every few minutes. Paul was never this silent. He always had one thing or another to say.

“Paul... you okay?”

“... You let them sneak up on you.”

Daryl blinked, a bit taken aback at the accusation. “What..?”

Paul looked over at him, unshed tears in his eyes. “Daryl... for as long as I've known you, nothing has ever been able to sneak up on you, much less four Saviors carrying guns and wearing heavy boots.” He paused, looking away and swallowing thickly. “Maybe we shouldn't work together anymore. We just distract each other.”

Daryl stopped the car and put it in park. He turned to face the scout. “Wait a minute... yer pissed at me?”

“No, no I'm not-” Paul sighed, leaning his head back on the seat. His heart was racing. He could still feel that Savior's head in his hands. He could still see the blood flowing from that other Savior's wrist. 

“So, what..? Yer breakin up with me because we had ta kill some Saviors?”

“No! Daryl, I don't want to break up!” The car was too hot, too stuffy. He yanked his seat belt off and pushed the car door open. 

“Paul! Where ya goin?!”

Paul got out of the car, yanking the beanie off his head and pacing next to the vehicle. He heard the car turn off and Daryl get out. “What were you thinking about when those Savior's came up behind you?”

Daryl slammed the door shut and came around the front of the car. “I wasn't thinkin about shit! I was watching you to make sure you didn't fall!”

“I wasn't going to fall, Daryl! This wasn't my first time climbing a damn tree!” Paul stopped pacing and turned to face Daryl.

“Why the hell am I bein interrogated?!”

Paul slammed the beanie down on the car in his frustration. “Because you could've died, Daryl! It was four against one! How could you let them sneak up on you like that?!”

“It wasn't four against one! I knew ya's up in the tree and was gonna help me!” Daryl's chest ached. They'd never fought like this before, not since they'd kissed that first time. He doesn't know how they snuck up on him. He'd been alert and aware of his surroundings. 

“Oh, great!” Paul scoffed. “Two against four! Much better odds!” He turned away from Daryl, leaning on his hands on the hood of the car. He stared down at his beanie, tears threatening to fall. 

Daryl stared at him, unsure what to say to comfort the scout's racing mind. “... Paul... I don't know how they snuck up on me. I promise... I's bein cautious. I's watchin 'n listenin. I dunno... maybe they're getting better at trackin.”

Jesus remained silent. He shouldn't be taking his frustrations out on Daryl. He swallowed thickly. “134...” He whispered. 

“What..?” Daryl stepped closer. “What d'ya mean?”

“... That's the number of lives I've taken since this thing started. I remember... every single kill... I dream about every face... and now I have three more to add.”

Daryl had a retort on the tip of his tongue, but he didn't want to argue with the man anymore. He knew Paul wasn't actually mad at him. His sweet boyfriend had always hated taking lives. Paul wasn't meant to be a killer. The hunter sighed and stepped closer, bringing a hand up to gently rub Paul's back. “... 'm sorry.”

“I... I don't want to lose you, Daryl...” Paul sobbed softly, bending over the hood of the car. “I can't.” The tears streaked down his cheeks. He doesn't cry often. In all his life, he's only cried a handful of times. 

Daryl stared at his boyfriend. He'd never seen the man cry. Not after Sasha died, not after all the lives they'd lost... never. He swallowed thickly. He didn't know how to comfort the man. The only thing he knew he could do... was hold him. “Hey...” He gently took Paul's arm to pull him away from the car. “C'mere...” Paul turned to him and let Daryl pull him to his chest. He wrapped his arms around Daryl's waist and buried his face in his boyfriend's shoulder. Daryl ran his fingers through Paul's hair.

He sobbed into Daryl's shirt, shoulders shaking and breathing hard. His fingers gripped into Daryl's shirt tightly. They pressed close and tight, both still reeling from the run in with the Saviors and their argument. Daryl let him cry and just held him. When he finally calmed down after a few minutes, Daryl leaned back and reached a hand to wipe any stray tears away. 

“Paul... if ya really think we should work separately, I ain't gonna, but I ain't gonna be happy 'bout it. I don't trust many others ta have yer back out here. We're a good team.” 

Paul shook his head, breath hitching. “No...” He buried his face back into Daryl's shoulder. “I'd rather work with you than with someone else.”

Daryl smiled and chuckled softly, relieved. He nuzzled into Paul's hair. “Good...” He pressed a kiss to the man's temple. “C'mon... let's go home. We'll head back out in the mornin 'n get a closer look at that building.” The scout nodded and slowly released the hunter. Daryl leaned down and kissed him softly. Paul leaned into the kiss, sighing softly. “I love you...”

Paul smiled and sniffled a bit. “I love you.” He nuzzled Daryl's hand as it slipped away from his cheek. They got back in the car, holding hands as Daryl drove them home.


End file.
